What prompted Condoleezza Rice to break a self-imposed silence on the Bush Administration's controversial use of harsh interrogation techniques on terror detainees? Friends and colleagues of the former Secretary of State say it was not something she had planned, but that she was simply responding to questions in public settings. Others suggest she's determined not to let former Vice President Dick Cheney, who left office with a popularity rating in the sub-basement, become history's spokesman for Bush policy on Gitmo. ...

Ted Dekker spent his formative years living with cannibals. It's a helpful background for an author who writes novels about serial killers. Dekker's parents, John and Helen, were serving as missionaries in the tiny Indonesian village of Kangime when he was born. "I grew up in one of the darkest places in the world you can imagine, in [the] jungle, with cannibals. I know we have certain images in our mind when we talk about cannibals, but we're ...

The fight over gay marriage may be far from over, but already some conservative Christian leaders are looking beyond the courtroom dramas and the legislative infighting. The trouble they see is not just an America where general support for gay marriage will have driven a wedge between churches and the world, but between churches themselves. "More than anything else, these developments may signal the fact that those who, on biblical grounds, are led by conscience to reject same-sex marriage, really ...

Nearly two years after the arrest of Abdul Aziz on multiple charges of inciting violence against the state of Pakistan, the firebrand cleric of Islamabad's radical Red Mosque has returned to the pulpit with a promise that he will continue with his struggle to establish Shari'a, or Islamic law, throughout the country. Just a day after he was released on bail, Aziz, wearing his trademark spectacles and graying beard, returned to the Red Mosque, the site of a weeklong siege ...

President Obama doesn't have a one-on-one meeting scheduled with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, but if Chavez were to initiate a conversation, Obama would likely go along with it, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said. Obama on Friday travels to Trinidad and Tobago for the Summit of the Americas, a meeting of leaders from North and South America. While there are no plans for a one-on-one with Chavez, the Venezuelan president is expected to be among several leaders at ...

The family of a woman who faces charges of killing an 8-year-old playmate of her daughter's said Sunday the accusations are "completely out of character." The Tracy, California, family offered their prayers to the victim's family. "We are deeply saddened by the loss of this beautiful girl," said a man who would not give his name, identifying himself only as a relative of suspect Melissa Huckaby, 28. He was referring to Sandra Cantu, who was last seen alive March ...

Joel Osteen is the senior pastor for the Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. It's America's largest congregation. His wife, Victoria Osteen, is the co-pastor there. The Osteens, known for their optimistic outlook on life, visited "Larry King Live" Tuesday night for a wide-ranging interview that covered President Obama, same-sex marriage, the recent outbreak of mass shootings, the state of religion in America and more. The following interview has been edited for brevity and clarity: Larry King: Since you ...

The box office fright flick "The Haunting in Connecticut" earned $23 million and a second-place ranking the first weekend of its release, satiating the moviegoer appetite for psychological thrills. But what is entertainment for many was reportedly true life for Carmen Reed, who insists on using her maiden name to protect her children and grandchildren. Reed, her husband and four children rented an old colonial home in Southington, Connecticut, in the mid-1980s in order to be close to a hospital ...

The numbers were good for "Knowing." The film, about a physics professor who sees clues for disastrous events in a time capsule's list of digits, overcame some pretty long odds at the box office -- going against the Paul Rudd-Jason Segel comedy "I Love You, Man," the Julia Roberts-Clive Owen romantic thriller "Duplicity" and some fairly scathing reviews -- to emerge as the weekend's No. 1 film. Though star Nicolas Cage wouldn't have predicted the outcome, in an interview before ...

Simon Cowell may not recognize "American Idol" alumna Mandisa the next time he sees her. The woman about whom the acerbic "American Idol" judge once said, "We're going to have to get a bigger stage," has lost 75 pounds -- and hopes to lose 100 or more. Though she has long forgiven Cowell for his snippy comments during season five about her weight, she said she still wants to lose more in part because he is a father figure for ...